A Kestrel’s Last Meal

Mummified kestrel (top) and 3-D scan of kestrel and stomach contents (above)(Courtesy Stellenbosch University)

A mummified kestrel’s CT scan shows it choked on its last meal, probably because it had been force-fed. This bird of prey from Egypt, in the collection of Iziko Museums of South Africa in Cape Town, is one of millions of animals mummified as religious offerings, called votive mummies. Kestrels, which are common in Egypt, usually regurgitate the indigestible parts of their meals as